[CQ-Contest] unscrupulous and frustrating

[Doug Smith]

Ward Silver wrote:
> A simple response is to only spot prefixes.  It would be an interesting feature for logging software to offer a "Spot Prefixes Only" option.

I think I typed up a similar proposal in a private email to someone else.  It would work like this:

Modifications would be made in node software to establish optional "obfuscation levels".

Bit 1:	If set, the callsign in each received spot is replaced by the country prefix.

	10105.0  ZD9T        02-Dec-2010 0624Z  up 2.350 YES!!           ZD9 <W5GZ>
				- becomes -
	10105.0  ZD9         02-Dec-2010 0624Z  up 2.350 YES!!           ZD9 <W5GZ>


Bit 2:  If set, the frequency in each received spot is replaced by the lowest frequency in the subband.

	10105.0  ZD9T        02-Dec-2010 0624Z  up 2.350 YES!!           ZD9 <W5GZ>
				- becomes -
	10100.0  ZD9T        02-Dec-2010 0624Z  up 2.350 YES!!           ZD9 <W5GZ>


Bit 3:  If set, any comments in received spots are stripped.

	10105.0  ZD9T        02-Dec-2010 0624Z  up 2.350 YES!!           ZD9 <W5GZ>
				- becomes -
	10105.0  ZD9T        02-Dec-2010 0624Z                           ZD9 <W5GZ>


Any combination of bits could be set -- if the "obfuscation level" is 5, then the callsign is replaced by the country prefix and comments are 
stripped, but the frequency is posted as spotted.

If *no* bits are set -- "obfuscation level" zero -- each spot is relayed as received.

This level would apply both to spots relayed to logged-in users, and to spots relayed to other nodes.  (possibly, the node op could choose a different 
level for users and for other nodes)  You could even provide for a simple database including a callsign and a level.  In the past, some DX stations 
have expressed a desire to not be spotted -- maybe setting Bit 8 for a specific callsign would cause spots for that callsign to be ignored altogether.

While this scheme would obviously work best if *every* node supported it, it would be worthwhile if even only a small number of nodes did.



The idea... is to allow the use of the network to keep track of propagation -- to know, for example, that 15 meters is open from W4 to Europe -- or to 
know that a needed country is on the air -- while still forcing anyone wanting to actually *work* the DX to be able to *copy* the DX.

-- 

Doug Smith W9WI
Pleasant View, TN  EM66